Connector for Bottle-Like Containers

ABSTRACT

The present invention concerns a connector ( 1 ) able to be mounted on the neck of a container for liquids ( 100 ), in the form of a bottler consisting of a main body having, sliding longitudinally therein, a slider provided with a radially expandable bottom portion so as to engage reversibly with a hollow:, probe, in which the hollow probe is able to perform the longitudinal displacement of the the slider and connect the inside of the container ( 100 ) with its interior so as to allow the dispensing of liquid from the container.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a connector able to be mounted on theopen end of the neck of a bottle, the connector having a mainlongitudinal axis X-X and comprising:

a main body, which comprises constraining means for constraining theconnector to the container and a sleeve able to connect the inside oftie container to the external environment;

a slider which is slidably inserted in the sleeve and is able to movelongitudinally between a closed bottom position, where the slider doesnot allow liquid to out from the container, and an open upper position,where the slider allows liquid to flow out from the container; theslider defining internally a seat able to receive a probe able to allowdispensing of the liquid;

the slider further comprising:

a central portion able to be guided at least partially by the sleeve;

a bottom portion, protruding from the sleeve towards the outside of thecontainer when the slider is in the bottom closed position, andcomprising a plurality of longitudinally elongated parts, which, whenthe slider is in the bottom closed position, reversibly engage with acorresponding engaging portion formed in the probe by expandingelastically in a radial direction with respect to the longitudinal axisX-X.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This type of connector may be used on containers with a neck, such asbottles, in combination with devices for controlled dispensing of thebeverages present inside the containers.

The devices for controlled dispensing of beverages referred to arealready known in the art and comprise, in brief, control means, a probeable to be inserted inside the connector, an end unit by means of whichit is possible to dispense the beverage and, in some cases, also asource of carbon dioxide or other inert gas.

When probe is inserted inside the connector, which is positioned on themouth of the container and the latter is arranged with its mouthdirected downwards, the device is ready for dispensing.

If the container is one of the ones which contain water, such as forexample the ones which can be found in the offices, the dispensingdevice will comprise refrigerating means; if the container is a bottlecontaining an alcoholic beverage and the dispensing device is suitablefor preparing a cocktail, it will comprise a source of inert gas whichis able to exert on the beverage a pressure which allows it to easilyreach the end unit from which it must be dispensed.

These latter devices are becoming increasingly popular in bars since,with them, precise quantities of beverages also of a varying nature maybe rapidly dispensed; in this way, the cocktails which are normallyserved in these premises may be prepared much more precisely andquickly.

The connectors used on the bottles designed for this type of dispensingdevice comprise a main body which, during use, is constrained to thecontainer and a slider positioned inside the main body. These connectorsare very similar to the one described in the American patent U.S. Pat.No. 4,375,864 which discloses a connector suitable for use in waterdispensers,

The main disadvantage of the connectors known hitherto is that they areable to ensure sealing of the container only before initial opening and,thereafter, only when probe is inserted inside them.

In bars, however, there is a need to have a connector which is able toensure sealing of the container also after initial opening and withoutprobe necessarily having to be inserted.

This technical effect would allow temporary interruption duringdispensing of the beverage present in the container, while ensuring, atthe same time, that there is no risk of accidentally introducing intothe container substances which are foreign to the liquid present thereinand that there is no accidental leakage of liquid.

In WO00/07902 there is disclosed a connector in which the jacket wherethe slider is located needs to comprise a narrowed portion forelastically biasing the probe radially inwards in order for the sliderto engage the probe.

The movement of the probe towards the interior of the container musttherefore be limited so that the slider does not fall within thecontainer but remains at least partly within the narrowed portion of thejacket.

This poses a further limit to the overall cross section of the openingswhich allow the fluid to flow outside of the container.

On top of this, the disclosed connector requires at least two separatesealing surfaces, i.e. where the two O-rings are represented, requiringa rather complex manufacturing.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,289,855 to Baker et al. discloses a connector where theengagement between the probe and the slider is obtained by virtue ofelastic deformation of the thickness of the material of the sliderwalls. Such an engagement requires strict tolerances and a precisedimensioning of the elements.

It would therefore be desirable to provide a connector which does notsuffer from the limitations of the prior art, having openings for thepassage of the fluid whose cross-section is not limited with respect tothe size of the neck of the container and which, at the same time, issimpler to manufacture.

In view of the state of the art described, the object of the presentinvention is to provide connectors able to satisfy the requirementsdescribed above more so than known hitherto.

As a result of he present invention it is possible to provide aconnector able to allow a large number of opening and closing cyclesfollowing insertion/extraction of probe of the dispensing device, whichallows higher pouring rates than the ones achievable by prior artconnectors and which does not require a complex manufacturing method forbeing made.

Moreover, a further advantage of the present connector is that it ispossible to use it in bars, in particular in combination with containerscontaining alcoholic beverages, allowing them to disconnect the probefrom the connector without the alcohol contained in the beverages beingable to evaporate, altering the organoleptic properties thereof.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, this object is achieved bymeans of a connector able to be mounted on the open end of the neck of abottle, the connector having a main longitudinal axis X-X andcomprising:

a main body, which comprises constraining means for constraining theconnector to the container and a sleeve able to connect the inside ofthe container to the external environment;

a slider which is slidably inserted in the sleeve and is able to movelongitudinally between a closed bottom position, where the slider doesnot allow liquid to flow out from the container, and an open upperposition, where the slider allows liquid to flow, out from thecontainer; the slider defining internally a seat able to receive a probeable to allow dispensing of the liquid;

the slider further comprising:

a central port-ion able to be guided at least partially by the sleeve;

a bottom portion, protruding from the sleeve towards the outside of thecontainer when the slider is in the bottom closed position, andcomprising a plurality of longitudinally elongated parts, which, whenthe slider is in the bottom closed position, reversibly engage with acorresponding engaging portion formed in the probe by expandingelastically in a radial direction with respect to the longitudinal axisX-X.

wherein the connector further comprises an upper portion having aconical shape terminating in an end having the outer diameter d4 such asto engage, with slight interference, with the upper portion of the mainbody;

the main body having, in the vicinity of its upper end, acircumferential projection projecting towards the inside of main bodyand with an inner diameter d5, the connector being such that when theupper portion of the slider passes over the projection, the bottompork-ion of the slider is situated inside the sleeve

Preferably, the longitudinally elongated parts each comprise a tooth,

According to a possible embodiment, the main body comprises:

a sleeve with an inner diameter d;

an upper portion having an inner diameter d3>d1;

the sleeve being longitudinally closer to the mouth of the containerthan the upper portion, when the connector is fixed to the container;

the upper portion comprising a circumferential projection projectingtowards the inside of the main body and having a height h such thath<d5−d3/2.

The slider mazy also comprise a central portion with an outer diameterd2 and an upper portion having an outer diameter d4>d2, wherein thecentral portion is longitudinally closer to the mouth of the containerthan the upper portion, when the connector is fixed to the container andthe slider is in the bottom closed position.

Preferably, the inner diameter d1 of the sleeve provides a liquid-tightseal when the sleeve is engaged with the outer surface of the slider orwith the central portion of the slider or with the outer surface of thechannel of the probe.

In an advantageous embodiment, d1 is substantially equal to d3, and d2is substantially equal to d4.

The slider may comprise a generally flat base between its central andbottom portions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The characteristic features and advantages of the present invention willbecome clear from the following detailed description of a practicalembodiment provided by way or a non-limiting example, with reference tothe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a partial cross-section and a partial front view of anexample of a connector according to a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, mounted on the mouth of a bottle-like container and aprobe able to engage with the connector;

FIG. 2 shows a partial cross-section and a partial front view of theconnector according to FIG. 1 in the closed configuration with probecompletely engaged inside it;

FIG. 3 a shows a partial cross-section and a partial front view of theconnector according to FIG. 1 in an intermediate configuration betweenthe closed configuration and the open configuration shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 3 b shows the cross-section of a detail of the connector accordingto FIG. 3 a:

FIG. 4 shows a partial cross-section and a partial front view of theconnector according to FIG. 3 a in an intermediate configuration betweenthe configuration shown in FIG. 3 a and the open configuration;

FIG. 5 shows a partial cross-section and a partial front view of thecontainer according to FIG. 1 in the open configuration

FIG. 6 shows an enlarged view of a detail according to FIG. 1

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to the figures, 100 denotes a container with alongitudinal axis Z-Z, having a neck 101 and a mouth, such as a bottlefor example. A probe 103, which in FIG. 1 is shown separate from thecontainer/connector assembly, is connected to the apparatus whichcontrols it and which forms the dispensing device. As can be seen in thefigures, it has a retaining groove 104 and windows 105 for allowing theintroduction of liquid from the container 100 into the channel 106 ofprobe 103.

1 denotes overall a connector which is integrally joined to thecontainer 100 and composed of a main body 3 and a slider 4 situatedinside it and longitudinally sliding therein.

The connector 1 has a longitudinal axis X-X which, when the connector 1is mounted on container 100, coincides with the longitudinal axis Z-Z ofthe container 100.

The main body 3 is provided with retaining means able to constrain itfirmly to the container 100. For example, it may advantageously comprisean outer skirt 5 with a lip 7 such as to engage with a suitable locatingelement formed on the neck 101 of the container 100, preventingextraction of the connector 1 from the neck 101 of the container 100.

The retaining means may also be formed by an inner thread able to engagewith a corresponding thread formed on the container 100.

The main body 3 may also comprise means able to prevent rotationrelative to the container 100; these means may advantageously consist ofprojections which are parallel to the axis X-X and engage withcorresponding projections formed on the outer surface of the neck of thecontainer 100.

Slider 4 is able to slide longitudinally between a bottom closedposition, shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 6, where it defines a closedconfiguration of the connector 1, and at least one upper open position,shown in FIG. 5, where it defines an open configuration of the connector1, and vice versa.

In the bottom closed position, slider 4 ensures the liquid-tightness ofthe connector 1 and is able to engage with and disengage from probe 103.

When connector 1 is in the upper open configuration, slider 4 iscompletely disengaged from main body 3 and is situated completely withincontainer 100; the apertures of windows 105 associated with probe 103are completely free.

It is also possible to regard as open those intermediate configurationsbetween the upper open configuration and the bottom closedconfiguration, which nevertheless allow the liquid to flow out of thecontainer 100. During the course of the present description referencewill be made mainly to the upper open configuration shown in FIG. 5.

The direction from the bottom closed position towards the tipper openposition thus defines the bottom-to-top direction and relates to thearrangement of the container 100 when it is being used, i.e. is upsidedown.

The connector 1 may furthermore comprise special means (not shown) forindicating attempts to remove the connector 1 from the container 100 orthe fact that initial opening has occurred.

The main body 3 comprises a sliding sleeve 9 which preferably has acircular cross-section and which has a first end 11 such that, when theconnector 1 is fixed to the container 100, the first end 11 is directedtowards the mouth of the container 100; the first end 11 is thereforethe bottom end of the sleeve 9, according to the definition given above.

Slider 4 comprises a central guiding portion 6 which is able to beguided by the sleeve 9 of the main body 3 and a bottom, engaging portion8 which is able to engage reversibly with probe 103 and is arrangedtowards the mouth of the container 100, i.e. on the bottom side of thecentral portion 6.

Slider 4 defines inside it a seat 10 able to receive probe 103.

When the connector 1 is in the closed configuration, the bottom engagingportion 8 of slider 4 is situated outside the sleeve 9 of the main body3.

In other words, if α indicates the plane perpendicular to the axis X-Xand passing through the first end 11 of the sleeve 9 directed towardsprobe 103, the bottom portion 8 of slider 4 is situated on the side ofthe plane a which is opposite to the the sleeve 9. The bottom portion 8is able to receive probe 103 by expanding radially. It may beadvantageously divided into a plurality, for example six, eight or tenelongated parts 12 which may advantageously be identical to each otherand preferably equally spaced along the outer perimeter of the bottomportion 8 of slider 4.

Engagement with the retaining groove 104 of probe 103 is achieved bymeans of teeth 14 which are advantageously formed on the bottom portion8 and preferably project towards the seat 10. Advantageously, a tooth 14is formed on each elongated part 12.

In this way, when probe 103 moves longitudinally towards the seat 10 ofslider 4, the conical end 108 of probe 103 will push the bottom portion8 of slider 4 outwards, boy means of the teeth 14 and the elongatedparts 12, making use of their radial elasticity.

As soon as teeth 14 have completely passed over the conical part 108 ofprobe 103, the elasticity of the elongated parts 12 will allow the teeth14 to return elastically into their rest position, thus resulting insnap-engagement of the bottom portion 8 Inside the retaining groove 104.

The size of the seat 10 of slider 4 is determined so that the base 16 ofthe seat 10 is in contact with the top end, 109 of probe 103, which isgenerally flat so as to allow also the transmission to slider 4 of highlongitudinal forces directed towards the centre of the container 100.

Advantageously, the distance between the teeth 14 and the base 16 isslightly less than the distance between the top, end 109 and the groove104, so as to ensure constant contact between probe 103 and slider 4.

The main body 3 comprises, at the end of the sleeve 9 opposite to thebottom end 11, a first abutment surface 17 able to cooperate with asecond corresponding abutment surface 18 formed on slider 4 in thevicinity of the end of the central portion 6 which is longitudinallyopposite to the bottom portion 8 and which has an outer diameter d2.

These first and second abutment surfaces 17, 18 are preferably formed assurfaces converging towards the plane α, for example frustoconicalsurfaces and/or surfaces with a cross-section in the form of acircumferential arc, and are respectively adjacent to the inner surfaceof the sleeve 9 and to the outer surface of the central portion 6 ofslider 4.

The function of these surfaces is to allow extraction of probe 103 fromthe seat 10 formed in slider 4 and preventing extraction of slider 4from the main body 3, exerting a longitudinal, force greater than themaximum force which the bottom portion 8 is able to exert on probe 103via the teeth 14.

When probe 103 must be extracted from the container 100 and slider 4reaches the bottom closed position, the two abutment surfaces 17, 18come into abutment with each other and the bottom portion 8 of slider 4is situated outside the sleeve 9.

The bottom portion 8 is formed so that the longitudinal force which Itis able to exert via the retaining means (i.e. teeth 14) is less thanthe maximum longitudinal force which the abutment surfaces 17 and 18 mayexert.

Consequently, each additional longitudinal movement of probe 103 outfrom the seat 10 of slider 4 results n radial expansion of the bottomportion 8, therefore allowing probe 103 to pass over the teeth 14. Probe103 at this point is free from its engagement inside the seat 10.

Advantageously, the in diameter d1 of the sleeve 9 is such that in isable to provide a liquid-tight seal when the sleeve is engaged with theouter surface of slider 4 or with its central portion 6 or with theouter surface of the channel 106.

Normally the diameter of channel 106 constitutes one of the design dataand consequently determines the dimensions of the other parts.

On the side of the first abutment surface 17 opposite to sleeve 9 (andtherefore above it), the main body 3 comprises an upper portion 19 ableto engage with a corresponding upper portion 20 of slider 4, formed onthe opposite side, relative to the first abutment surface 18, to that ofthe central portion 6.

This upper portion 19 of the main body 3 is advantageously cylindrical,having an inner diameter d3>d1.

The bottom portion 19 of the main body 3 has, in the vicinity of itsupper end (namely opposite to plane α), a third and a fifth abutmentsurface denoted by 25 and 27 in FIG. 2, respectively. These surfaces areadvantageously formed on a circumferential projection 23 projectingtowards the inside of main body 3 and with an inner diameter d5.

The abutment surfaces 25 and 27 therefore define two conical surfaceshaving opposite vertices with respect to the projection 23 and areadvantageously inclined relative to axis X-X by about 15° and about 45°,respectively.

The upper portion 20 of slider 4 terminates in an end 22 opposite to thebottom portion 8 where the outer diameter d4 is such as to engage, withslight interference, with the upper portion 19 having a diameter d3, soas to prevent any relative movements of slider 4 and main body 3.

The upper portion 20 may advantageously have a cylindrical section withan outer diameter d6 (not indicated in the figures), where d2<d6<d4 andd6>d5, joined on one side to the first abutment surface 18 and, on theopposite side, to an additional conical surface which converges towardsthe bottom portion 8 and the outer diameter of which reaches the valueof d4 substantially at the end 22.

In the vicinity of this maximum diameter d4, namely above and below it,it is possible to identify a fourth abutment surface 26, facing thebottom of the container, and a sixth abutment surface 23 which isdirected towards sleeve 9 and the functions of which will be describedmore fully below.

The surfaces 25 and 27 co-operate with surfaces 28 and 26, respectively,so as to allow safe opening and closing of the connector 1.

In fact, when the upper portion 20, during its longitudinal movement,passes over projection 23, the pairs 25/28 and 27/26 of abutmentsurfaces produce a peak in the axial resistive force which opposes themovement of slider 4.

This peak depends on the relative inclination of the surfaces, which ischosen so that slider 4 can be suitably actuated by probe 103.

The first of the two peaks mentioned above occurs, during opening of theconnector, when surface 28 passes over surface 25; the second peakoccurs during the closing phase, when surface 26 passes over surface 27.

The longitudinal distance between the end 22 and the projection 23 whenthe connector 1 is in the bottom closed configuration, namely the travelmovement which probe 103 must perform between the bottom closed positionand the position where the abovementioned peak may be detected, must besuch as to satisfy a condition clarified below.

Since, when the projection 23 is passed over, a peak value in the forceis reached and this force, applied to slider 4, opposes the movement ofprobe 103, it is important that this force does not cause disengagementof slider 4 from probe 103, namely that the bottom portion 6 should beable to maintain its grip on probe 103.

When probe 103 moves towards the centre of container 100, the force,which probe 103 may apply on slider 4 depends or, the engagement of theupper end 109 against the base 16 of slider. In this case, there istherefore no risk of the probe being able to disengage from seat 10.

In this case, the upper portion 20) of slider 4, which has a conicalshape, tends to open, producing interference with the inner wall of theupper portion 19.

When probe 103, however, is moving from the centre of the container 100towards its mouth, the force which probe 103 may apply on slider 4depends on the engagement of the bottom portion 8 inside the retaininggroove 104. Since the bottom portion 8 of slider 4 is deformableradially outwards, the force pulse produced as a result of passing overprojection 23 could be greater than the opposing force which may begenerated by the sole resistance to radial expansion of bottom portion 8of slider 4.

It is therefore possible to design connector 1 so that the bottomportion 8 of slider 4 is situated inside the sleeve 9 when the upperportion 20 of slider 4 passes over the projection 23, as can be seen inFIG. 3 b.

In this way, radial expansion of the bottom portion 8 is prevented bythe presence of the sleeve 9; moreover, the conical form of the upperportion 20 of slider 4 and the projection 23 are such that, as a resultof passing over the projection 23, the cone of the upper portion 20tends to close. This reduces friction with the inner wall of the upperportion 19 and the axial force which opposes longitudinal sliding ofslider 4 and, consequently, also the axial force which tends to open thebottom portion 8.

In other words, the longitudinal distance between second abutmentsurface 18 and sixth abutment surface 28 may be advantageously greaterthan the longitudinal extension of the bottom portion 8 and less thanthe longitudinal distance between the first abutment surface 17 andthird abutment surface 25.

Main body 3 and slider 4 may be both made of a single piece of polymermaterial, preferably by means of moulding.

Obviously a person skilled in the art, in order to satisfy contingentand specific requirements, may make numerous modifications andvariations to the configurations described above, all of which arecontained, moreover, within the scope of protection of the invention asdefined by the following claims.

1. Connector able to be mounted on the open end of the neck of a bottle,the connector having a main longitudinal axis X-X and comprising: a mainbody, which comprises constraining means for constraining the connectorto the container and a sleeve able to connect the inside of thecontainer to the external environment; a slider which is slidablyinserted in the sleeve and is able to love longitudinally between aclosed bottom position, where the slider does not allow liquid to flowout from the container, and an open upper position, where the sliderallows liquid to flow out from the container; the slider defininginternally a seat able to receive a probe able to allow dispensing ofthe liquid; the slider further comprising: a central portion able to beguided at least partially by the sleeve; a bottom portion, protrudingfrom the sleeve towards the outside of the container when the slider isin the bottom closed position, and comprising a plurality oflongitudinally elongated parts, which, when the slider Is in the bottomclosed position, reversibly engage with a corresponding engaging portionformed in the probe by expanding elastically in a radial direction withrespect to the longitudinal axis X-X, wherein the connector furthercomprises an upper portion having a conical shape terminating in an endhaving the outer diameter d4 such as to engage, with slightinterference, with the upper portion of the main body; the main bodyhaving, in the vicinity of its upper end, a circumferential projectionprojecting towards the inside of main body and with an inner diameterd5, the connector being such that when the upper portion of the sliderpasses over the projection, the bottom portion of the slider is situatedinside the sleeve.
 2. Connector according to claim 1, in which thelongitudinally elongated parts each comprise a tooth.
 3. Connectoraccording to claim 1, in which the main body comprises: a sleeve with aninner diameter d1; an upper portion having an inner diameter d3>d1; thesleeve being longitudinally closer to the mouth of the container thanthe upper portion, when the connector is fixed to the container; theupper portion comprising a circumferential projection projecting towardsthe, inside of the main body and having a height h such that h<d5−d3/2.4. Connector according to claim 1, in which the slider comprises: acentral portion with an outer diameter d2; an upper portion having anouter diameter d4>d2; the central portion being longitudinally closer tothe mouth of the container than the upper portion, when the connector isfixed to the container and the slider is in the bottom closed position.5. Connector according to claim 4, wherein the inner diameter d1 of thesleeve is such to provide a liquid-tight seal when the sleeve is engagedwith the outer surface of the slider or with the central portion of theslider or with the outer surface of the channel of the probe. 6.Connector according to claims 3 and 4, in which d1 is substantiallyequal to d3, and d2 is substantially equal to d4.
 7. Connector accordingto claim 1, the slider comprising a generally flat base between itscentral and bottom portions.